Appellate

  • July 30, 2026

    Resolution Copper Creates $54M Trust For Ariz., NM Tribes

    Resolution Copper Co. said it established a $54 million trust that will provide annual funding to 11 Indigenous nations that have cultural and ancestral ties to a sacred Arizona worship site that's facing destruction to make way for a multibillion-dollar mining operation.

  • July 30, 2026

    Fed. Circ. OKs Samsung Win Over Patent Tied To $81M Award

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday upheld a Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision invalidating a patent covering standard-essential 5G wireless network technology that Samsung was directed to pay $81 million for infringing, rejecting G+ Communications LLC's procedural and evidentiary arguments.

  • July 30, 2026

    Split NJ High Court Backs Walmart In Snowy Lot Injury Suit

    The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Walmart didn't create the "unusual circumstances" required to make it liable for injuries suffered by a customer who slipped on a snowy parking lot, drawing a sharp dissent from justices who said the majority's take shunned case law and "bedrock tort principles" and misread case law.

  • July 30, 2026

    Minn. Sued Over Dairy Expansion Environmental Review

    Advocacy groups in Minnesota are suing the state over its decision not to provide a government document that outlines the potential environmental effects of the proposed West River Dairy expansion, arguing significant impacts to air and water quality were ignored.

  • July 30, 2026

    Skechers Can't Run From Manufacturer Tax, Mass. Court Says

    Skechers must pay nearly $200,000 in back excise taxes and interest, a Massachusetts intermediate appellate court said Thursday, rejecting the shoe brand's argument that it is not a manufacturer.

  • July 30, 2026

    WDTX Jury Awards $1.5M In Lighting Patent Retrial

    A Texas federal jury has awarded Chinese company Jiaxing Super Lighting almost $1.5 million in damages from rivals found to have infringed an LED tube lamp patent, a year after the Federal Circuit ordered a new trial.

  • July 30, 2026

    5th Circ. Upholds Plea Term Requiring Mental Health Meds

    The Fifth Circuit has ruled that a Texas man still cannot overturn a special sentencing condition requiring him to take prescribed mental health medication even despite the U.S. Supreme Court granting the man's appeal and setting a new standard for exceptions to appeal waivers in plea deals.

  • July 30, 2026

    6th Circ. Orders Look At IRS Resignation Deal In Bias Suit

    An Ohio federal court must decide whether an IRS worker gave up her disability bias and retaliation claims against the U.S. Treasury Department in a resignation agreement, a split Sixth Circuit panel ruled, refusing to weigh the merits of an appeal she brought before entering the deal.

  • July 30, 2026

    2nd Circ. Revives Decongestant 'Maximum Strength' Claims

    The Second Circuit on Thursday revived claims in multidistrict litigation alleging makers of oral decongestants misled consumers by labeling their products as "maximum strength," while finding the bulk of the remaining claims were preempted by federal regulation.

  • July 30, 2026

    Mich. Justices Overrule Longtime Med Mal Filing Rule

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned a 20-year-old precedent that had barred many wrongful death medical malpractice lawsuits, ruling personal representatives may use the state's medical malpractice tolling statute to extend the time for filing claims after serving a required notice of intent to sue. 

  • July 30, 2026

    2nd Circ. Revives Migrant's Classwide Declaratory Relief Bid

    A New York federal court erred in decertifying a class seeking declaratory relief regarding government procedures on bond hearings for immigration detainees, the Second Circuit ruled Wednesday, finding the court improperly considered factors outside the federal procedural rule governing class actions.

  • July 30, 2026

    Kalshi Sports Offerings Appear On Shaky Ground At 6th Circ.

    A Sixth Circuit panel looked askance at Kalshi's push to have its sports event contracts shielded from state gambling regulators Thursday, pointedly questioning the prediction market giant about the difference between its offerings and traditional sports bets.

  • July 30, 2026

    Ohio Panel Says Burnt Pot Smell Justified Vehicle Search

    An Ohio appeals court has ruled that even though marijuana is legal in the state, law enforcement can use visible signs of the drug's use as probable cause to search a vehicle, as driving while intoxicated is still a crime.

  • July 30, 2026

    Ill. Atty Sanctioned For AI Slop In Starbucks Bias Suit

    A unanimous Illinois appeals court sanctioned an attorney representing a former Starbucks employee in a workplace discrimination suit after determining that he submitted briefs using false citations and quotations hallucinated by artificial intelligence software.

  • July 30, 2026

    NJ Appeals Court Approves Docs Release In Atty Bribery Case

    A former Bayonne mayoral candidate accused of accepting a bribe from an attorney is entitled to limited access to communications related to the investigation in his case, a New Jersey state appeals court ruled Thursday.

  • July 30, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Revives Schmeisser Gun Magazine Patent Suit

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday reversed a Wyoming judge's decision that found a firearm patent invalid as indefinite, reviving a preliminary injunction against a Bosnian gun part-maker that the lower court had dissolved.

  • July 30, 2026

    J&J Pans Talc Claimant's 'Absurd' Bid To Nix $25M Appeal

    In a sharply worded memo, Johnson & Johnson told the Connecticut Appellate Court that it should deny a "nonsensical" dismissal motion from a real estate developer who won a $25 million asbestos-related cancer verdict, defending its appeal of the trial court outcome as timely.

  • July 30, 2026

    Broward Sheriff Can't Duck Parkland Shooting Claims

    A Florida appeals court said Wednesday that the Broward County Sheriff must face claims from victims of the 2018 high school mass shooting in Parkland, Florida, ruling that sovereign immunity does not apply to negligence claims regarding the events on the day of the shooting.

  • July 30, 2026

    Army Asks 4th Circ. To Rethink Boarding School Burial Ruling

    The U.S. Army wants the Fourth Circuit to rethink a decision that says it must return the remains of two Indigenous children from a former Indian boarding school cemetery to a Nebraska tribe, arguing that if not reversed, it will cause confusion, likely spur more litigation and slow repatriation.

  • July 30, 2026

    3M Wins 11th Circ. Bid To Fight PFAS Suit In Federal Court

    An Eleventh Circuit panel said a judge should have let 3M Co. fight an Alabama town's lawsuit over forever chemical contamination in federal court based on its defense that some pollution may stem from firefighting foams made for the U.S. military.

  • July 30, 2026

    9th Circ. Rules 401(k) Plan Arbitration Clause Unenforceable

    A split Ninth Circuit panel refused Thursday to force individual arbitration of a former asset management company worker's proposed class action alleging 401(k) self-dealing, ruling that an arbitration provision in retirement plan documents was unenforceable because it sought to nullify rights guaranteed by federal benefits law.

  • July 30, 2026

    DA Says Trump's NY Hush Money Conviction Must Stand

    New York prosecutors told a state appellate court that President Donald Trump's 34-count felony conviction for falsifying business records is "unaffected" by the U.S. Supreme Court's watershed presidential immunity decision and should be upheld.

  • July 29, 2026

    X, Ad Group End Fight Over Alleged Ad Boycott Scheme

    Elon Musk's X will no longer pursue its claims that the World Federation of Advertisers schemed to have advertisers boycott the social media company by cutting back on or stopping ad purchases, the company and advertising trade group announced Wednesday.

  • July 29, 2026

    9th Circ. Vacates Orrick Win In Stock Transfer Deal Dispute

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday reversed a lower court's finding that Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP can't be held liable in a battle over a stock transfer agreement gone awry, ruling that California law does allow a party to the transfer to pursue equitable indemnity in the case.

  • July 29, 2026

    2nd Circ. Backs Ex-Shkreli Atty's 401(k) Restitution Deal

    A New York trial judge erred in rejecting a retirement-fund garnishment deal that would have protected Martin Shkreli's convicted former lawyer from tax penalties, the Second Circuit ruled Wednesday.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 Key Questions Attys Should Ask About Statistical Analyses

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    Even attorneys without a background in statistics can effectively vet the general concepts of a statistical analysis by asking targeted questions and can thereby reinforce the credibility and relevance of expert testimony — or expose its weaknesses, say Katrina Schydlower and Christopher Cunio at Hunton and Kevin Cahill at FTI Consulting.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: April Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy identifies practice tips from three recent rulings involving allegations of racial discrimination in mortgage applications, health insurance networks and actual cash value losses.

  • 'Made In America' EO May Not Survive Section 230

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    President Donald Trump's recent executive order to combat fraudulent "Made in America" claims in advertising directs the Federal Trade Commission to deem online marketplaces' failure to verify third-party origin claims as unlawful, but such a rule would likely run into Section 230's publisher immunity doctrine, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

  • Assessing EcoFactor's Impact On Damages Experts' Opinions

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    Though the Federal Circuit's ruling in EcoFactor v. Google gave rise to concerns that damages experts would be forced to rely on undisputed facts, recent case law suggests that those concerns are unwarranted, says Christopher Loh at Venable.

  • High Court Cert Case Would Test Sovereign Award Immunity

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    The D.C. Circuit's July 2025 Amaplat Mauritius v. Zimbabwe Mining Development decision appears to create a circuit split while elevating form over substance in a manner that, if left unreviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court, could bar the courthouse doors for creditors holding arbitration awards against recalcitrant foreign sovereigns, says Jeff Newton at Omni Bridgeway.

  • CFTC Actions Show Prediction Market Insider Trading Risks

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    It is a myth that insider trading law does not apply in prediction markets, as the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's recent enforcement actions illustrate that it has full authority to pursue such cases federally — and intends to, says attorney Gregg Goldfarb.

  • 2nd Circ. Clarifies When Prior Good Acts May Be Admissible

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    The Second Circuit's recent ruling in U.S. v. Cardenas, vacating a drug conspiracy conviction over improperly excluded evidence, indicates that evidence of prior good acts may be admissible to corroborate a defendant's testimony about their understanding of events and intent, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Opinion

    Apple Discovery Fight Could Revive DOJ's Antitrust Appetite

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    Winning discovery disputes in the ongoing federal antitrust litigation over Apple’s app store practices is a huge opportunity for the Justice Department to return to its once-vigorous pursuit of product tying by tech monopolies, catch up with foreign competition regulators and establish clear standards for digital markets, says Ediberto Roman at Florida International University.

  • Lockdown To Ledger: COVID Rulings Inform Crypto Coverage

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    As cryptocurrencies move deeper into mainstream financial markets, courts tasked with determining whether traditional insurance policies respond to digital asset losses have been evaluating coverage through the analytical framework of COVID-19 business interruption litigation, with one key recurring theme, say attorneys at Kennedys.

  • Opinion

    State Bars Need To Get Specific About AI Confidentiality

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    Lawyers need to put actual client information into artificial intelligence tools to get their full value, but they cannot confidently do so until state bars offer clear, formal authority on which plan tiers of the three most popular generative AI tools are safe to use when sharing specific client details, says attorney Nick Berk.

  • The Federal Circuit's Evolving View Of Trade Secrets

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    In recent years, the Federal Circuit's approach to defining "readily ascertainable" information and determining sufficiency of trade secret identification has shifted, trending away from other circuits and potentially presenting a higher bar for trade secrets plaintiffs, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • What Justices' Review Of Guam Case Will Mean For Permitting

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    In U.S. Department of the Air Force v. Prutehi Guahan, the U.S. Supreme Court will address whether a federal agency's permit application is a final decision that courts can review — a question whose answer could reshape the timing and strategy of environmental litigation across the federal permitting landscape, say attorneys at Foley Hoag.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Restraint Anchors Constitutional Order

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    Contrasting opinions in two recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings — Trump v. CASA and Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections — demonstrate how the judiciary’s constitutionally entrusted role can easily be preserved or disrupted, and invite renewed attention to the enduring importance of judicial restraint, says Ninth Circuit Judge J. Clifford Wallace.

  • Human Authorship Is Still Central To Copyright Eligibility

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    In declining to review the D.C. Circuit's ruling in Thaler v. Perlmutter — holding that a work purely generated by artificial intelligence cannot be copyrighted — the U.S. Supreme Court has reinforced the human authorship requirement, so it is critical for creators of AI-assisted projects to document their involvement, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Resolving The Conflict In 2nd Circ. Foreign Discovery Rulings

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    The Second Circuit recently issued two seemingly inconsistent decisions regarding the federal statute that permits U.S. discovery for purposes of a foreign proceeding, but the unifying feature appears to be the broad scope for district court discretion under Section 1782, say attorneys at Katsky Korins.

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